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AcknowledgmentsThe City University of New York (CUNY) launched Accelerated Study in Associate Programs(ASAP) in 2007 with funding from New York City’s Center for Economic Opportunity (CEO),and CEO has continued to support the program. In 2009, senior university leadership from theCUNY Office of Academic Affairs — Alexandra Logue, former Executive Vice Chancellor forAcademic Affairs and University Provost; John Mogulescu, Senior University Dean forAcademic Affairs and Dean of the School of Professional Studies; and David Crook, UniversityDean for Institutional Research and Assessment — approached MDRC about the possibility ofevaluating ASAP, and we enthusiastically accepted the opportunity. CUNY secured the initialinvestment for the evaluation from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust; theRobin Hood Foundation provided additional funds soon after. We greatly appreciate theirgenerous backing and ongoing commitment.We are very grateful to Donna Linderman, the University Associate Dean for StudentSuccess Initiatives and ASAP Executive Director, for her invaluable partnership and collaborationthroughout the study. She worked closely with MDRC to launch the evaluation at eachcollege and has continued to play a critical role. We are also grateful to Zineta Kolenovic,currently ASAP Expansion and Replication Specialist, and Diana Strumbos, ASAP AssistantDirector for Research and Evaluation, who provided data for the report from CUNY’s InstitutionalResearch Database and have been instrumental in helping us understand the data and keyCUNY policies. Daniela Boykin, ASAP Deputy Director, provided helpful information aboutthe program operations throughout the study. Ms. Linderman, Ms. Kolenovic, Ms. Strumbos,and Ms. Boykin also reviewed an earlier draft of this report and provided valuable feedback.We greatly appreciate the assistance and support of several administrators and staff atBorough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), Kingsborough Community College(KCC), and LaGuardia Community College (LGCC). Space does not permit us to nameeveryone who has played a role in ASAP and the evaluation, but we want to particularlyacknowledge some individuals. President Antonio Pérez and former Senior Vice President ofAcademic Affairs Sadie Bragg at BMCC; former President Regina Peruggi and Vice Presidentfor Academic Affairs and Provost Stuart Suss at KCC; and President Gail Mellow, former VicePresident for Academic Affairs Peter Katopes, and Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs AnnFeibel at LGCC have supported the project and provided important leadership. The colleges’current and former ASAP Directors and Assistant Directors — Lesley Leppert-McKeever andNadine Brown at BMCC; Richard Rivera and Marie Caty at KCC; and Bernard Polnariev atLGCC — worked closely with MDRC to begin the study on their campuses and have beenterrific partners over the years. We appreciate all that they and the ASAP staff at the threecolleges have done to support the evaluation and bring the program model to life for participat-xi